Authors like Val McDermid and Ian Rankin are well-known amongst the readers of crime fiction but, beneath the top rank of bestsellers are a host of writers, some new and some who have built loyal followings over the years but who have never quite broken through. It is to give a boost to these authors that the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger in the Library Award exists. Again sponsored by the publishers, Random House, the Dagger is awarded to a writer nominated by library users and chosen by a panel of librarians, all of whom work with the public. This year’s panel is chaired by Mark Benjamin, formerly Team Librarian at Hexham Library, and includes librarians from throughout the UK.
Colin Cotterill with Margaret Murphy
Photo: Fiona Davies
Unlike most other literary prizes, the Dagger in the Library is awarded not for an individual book but for the author’s body of work. Last year’s winner was Colin Cotterill, the author of the novels featuring the wonderful Dr Siri Piboin, National Coroner of Laos, and his quirky team of misfits. Previous winners have included Stuart MacBride and Craig Russell whilst Lesley Horton and C J Sansom have been Highly Recommended.
Nominations have now closed: the nominated authors must be alive, preferably working in Britain and cannot have won the award before. Entries from reading groups or individuals must have been submitted through a library. Each branch library or reading group can nominate up to three individual authors so any arguments can be left to the judging panel! The judges do welcome short supporting statements as these help them come to their conclusion.
When nominations closed, 73 submissions had been recieved, naming 58 different authors. Groups nominating the winning author will be entered in a draw for £300 to be spent on books. The shortlist will be announced at this year’s Crimefest, to be held in Bristol 20-23rd May. Details of shortlisted authors will subsequently appear on this site.
As before, all groups whose nominated authors are shortlisted are entered into a draw for two tickets to the prestigious Dagger Awards ceremony, to be held this year at the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate on 22nd-25th July.
Queries to: library.dagger@thecwa.co.ukMark Benjamin (Chair) worked as a semi-detached Team Librarian (aka “loose cannon”) with Northumberland libraries from 1980 until 2009 – which probably explains his preference for “loner” crime-fighters from Falco to Robicheaux . Now a free-lance online bookseller.
Cheney Gardner (Vice-Chair) is currently the Reader and Community Services Manager at the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. She has worked in public libraries for about 7 years, many of them spent happily supporting reading groups and promoting reading. She is an avid reader herself and loves a good mystery.
Karen Fraser is Customer Service Librarian with Shetland Library, Britain's most northerly library service. She has reading tastes as wide as her mood swings, but likes to spend the long dark winters immersed in the foulest depths of the crime writers' art.
When Viki Lagus has finished developing the library community in South Tyneside, there is nothing she likes better than surrounding herself with toppling towers of crime fiction books and deciding which one to go for next..!
John Martin is a veteran librarian, patrolling the mean streets of Leicestershire upholding the good name of crime fiction against literary gangsters, saga writers and the hidden underworld of The Booker Prize.
Helen McNabb is the stock manager for the Vale of Glamorgan libraries. She has been working in public libraries for 19 years, and is a keen reader enjoying crime, science fiction and non fiction, and enjoys having new writers suggested by the nominations for the Dagger in the Library
Deborah Ryan currently works at RNIB's National Library Service where she manages a team who help blind and partially sighted readers to get the best out of the meagre 5% of books published in accessible formats. She enjoys a good old-fashioned whodunnit but has discovered new and exciting crime genres while being a Dagger judge.